System and method for generation of virtual account-linked card

ABSTRACT

Embodiments of systems and methods for generating virtual account-linked cards are described. A virtual account-linked card may be generated in response to a determination that a physical account-linked card has been forgotten at a card reader and ingested by the card reader. A virtual account-linked card may be restricted such that it can only be used to execute a transaction with authorized transaction partners identified in a database.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.16/394,141 filed Apr. 25, 2019, the complete disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This disclosure relates to account-linked cards, and more specifically,to systems and methods for generating virtual account-linked cards whenphysical account-linked cards are forgotten or lost at a card reader.

BACKGROUND

Account-linked cards have become commonplace, as many individuals useaccount-linked cards such as those for access to membership clubaccounts, rewards accounts, gyms, parking facilities, secured buildings,accounts at banking institutions, accounts for mass transportation andother types of accounts. Account-linked cards are frequently used withcard readers, some of which require the account holder to insert theaccount-linked card containing information on a magnetic strip orinformation on an embedded memory into the card reader. After the cardhas been read and authenticated, the account holder may be able to carryout various transactions.

When a card reader requires an account holder to insert a physicalaccount-linked card to access her accounts or execute a transaction, theaccount holder may forget to remove the account-linked card whenfinishing with the card reader. In that situation, some card readers areconfigured to ingest or swallow the account-linked card so that once thecustomer has left the area of the card reader, the account-linked cardis no longer accessible to persons other than the account holder.

However, such a system may cause significant inconvenience to an accountholder. If a card reader has ingested an account holder's account-linkedcard, the account holder will no longer be able to use theaccount-linked card to access their accounts at the card reader orexecute transactions using the card. Frequently, the account holder'sonly option for obtaining a working account-linked card is to call theaccount servicing institution with which the account-linked card isassociated, cancel the account-linked card, and order a replacement cardto be sent through the mail. This process can be time consuming andleave the customer without sufficient access to their accounts.

Therefore, there is a need for systems which protect account holders whoforget their account-linked cards at a card reader without causing thoseaccount holders the inconvenience of being denied access to theiraccounts for significant periods of time.

SUMMARY

It is an object of this disclosure to describe a system that improvesaccount holder access to an account associated with an account-linkedcard while maintaining protection of the account holder's accountinformation when the account-linked card is forgotten.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a system including a cardreader configured to read an account-linked card having account-linkinginformation, a server including a processor, and a storage mediumcontaining a database which stores data for an account associated withthe account-linked card. The data includes information foraccount-linked cards and virtual cards associated with the account. Thecard reader is configured to determine whether the account-linked cardhas been forgotten and in response to a determination that theaccount-linked card has been forgotten, send a signal to the serverindicating that the account-linked card has been forgotten. The serveris configured, in response to receiving the signal indicating that theaccount-linked card has been forgotten, to disable the account-linkedcard and generate a new virtual card having the account-linkinginformation by editing the data in the database.

Embodiments of the present disclosure further provide a method includingthe steps of reading an account-linked card having account-linkinginformation at a card reader, determining whether the account-linkedcard has been forgotten and in response to a determination that theaccount-linked card has been forgotten, ingesting the account-linkedcard in the card reader, sending a signal to a server via a networkindicating that the account-linked card has been forgotten, flagging theaccount-linked card as unauthorized in a database located on a storagemedium, where the database stores data for an account associated withthe account-linked card, generating a virtual card in the databasehaving the

Embodiments of the present disclosure further provide a server whichincludes a processor. The server is configured to receive a notificationfrom a card reader identifying a lost account-linked card havingaccount-linking information and which is associated with an account; inresponse to receipt of the notification, create a flag in a databasecontained in a storage medium which stores data for the account, whereinthe flag identifies the account-linked card as unauthorized; and inresponse to receipt of the notification, generate a virtual card havingthe account-linking information in the database, wherein the virtualcard is authorized to be used to access the account.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an example embodiment of a system for generating avirtual account-linked card.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example embodiment of a database used with asystem for generating a virtual account-linked card.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example embodiment of an account within a databaseused with a system for generating a virtual account-linked card.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example embodiment of a method for generating avirtual account-linked card.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example embodiment of a method for determiningauthorized transaction partners.

FIG. 6 illustrates an example embodiment of a system for generating avirtual account-linked card using an automated teller machine where thevirtual account-linked card is a payment card.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example embodiment of a method for generating avirtual account-linked card using an automated teller machine where thevirtual account-linked card is a payment card.

FIG. 8 illustrates an example embodiment of a method for determiningauthorized transaction partners for transactions executed with a virtualpayment card.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

One aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a system thatautomatically generates a virtual account-linked card when a physicalaccount-linked card is forgotten or abandoned at a card reader.Hereinafter, a physical account-linked card will be referred to simplyas “an account-linked card.”

An example embodiment of a system for generating a virtualaccount-linked card is shown in FIG. 1 . The system 100 includes a cardreader 105 which can read and authenticate an account-linked card 130.The card reader 105 is connected to a network 135 which can be theInternet, a wide area network (WAN), or another suitable type ofnetwork. The card reader 105, like other elements of system 100, may beconnected to the network via a wireless connection or a wiredconnection.

A server 110 is also connected to the network 135. The server 110includes a central processing unit (CPU) and a memory for storinginstructions executable by the CPU. The server 110 is capable ofaccessing a database 125 which includes one or more storage media andstores various data associated with one or more accounts. As shown inFIG. 1 , the server 110 is connected directly to the database 125,though database 125 could alternatively be incorporated within theserver 110, accessed by the server 110 via the network 135, orconfigured in any other suitable way for access by the server 110.Database 125 may additionally be functionally distributed across two ormore hardware units accessible by the server 110.

System 100 may also include a mobile device 115 and a computer 120,which are connected to the network 135. The mobile device 115 orcomputer 120 may be those of an account holder of an account associatedwith the account-linked card 130. The mobile device 115 and computer 120are suitable for receiving notifications sent by the server 110 via thenetwork 135 relating to the account-linked card 130 or the accountassociated with the account-linked card 130. The mobile device 115 maybe a smart phone or any other network connected device suitable forreceiving notifications.

The card reader 105 is a device capable of reading and authenticatingaccount-linking information stored on the account-linked card 130. Thecard reader 105 may include a display for displaying a graphical userinterface to an account holder. The card reader 105 may further includea keypad, a keyboard, and/or a touch screen interface by which theaccount holder can input information. The card reader 105 preferablyincludes a CPU and a memory which stores instructions for execution bythe CPU.

The card reader 105 may include a slot or another receptacle forreceiving and reading the account-linking information stored on theaccount-linked card 130. The account-linked card 130 may be any securecard such as a magnetic strip card which stores account-linkinginformation in a magnetic strip, a smart card having an integratedcircuit and memory which stores account-linking information in thememory, or a card implementing radio frequency identificationtechnology.

In ordinary use, an account holder may insert her account-linked card130 into the card reader 105. The card reader 105 may then prompt theaccount holder via the graphical user interface on the display toauthenticate the account-linked card 130, for example, by entering apersonal identification number (PIN), or by other means. If successfullyauthenticated, the card reader 105 may display the account holder'saccount information to the account holder via the graphical userinterface and may also allow the account holder to make transactions.

When preparing to display account information to the account holder, thecard reader 105 sends a request to the server 110, which may be in theform of an application programming interface (API) call, via the networkrequesting account information. The server 110 retrieves the requestedinformation from the database 125 and sends it back to the card reader105 via the network for display to the account holder in the graphicaluser interface. Information stored in the database 125 is described infurther detail hereinafter with reference to FIG. 2 .

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram showing information stored in database125. Database 125 stores information for a plurality of accounts,including accounts 200, 205, 210, 215, and 220. The quantity of accountsshown in database 125 is limited in FIG. 2 for convenience andsimplicity, but such a database may be capable of storing informationfor a very large number of accounts, depending on the size of theinstitution servicing the accounts. Each individual account, such asaccount 200, may be associated with one account holder or may beassociated with more than one account holder such as in the case of afamily having a joint account. Also, a single account holder may beassociated with more than one account.

For each account, as shown for account 200 in FIG. 2 , certainaccount-specific information is stored in the database 125. Suchaccount-specific information includes account transaction history whichis stored in the account transaction history records 230. Accounttransaction history may include data for past transactions associatedwith the account, including an identity of a transaction partner foreach transaction, date and time of each transaction, value of eachtransaction, and transaction type of each transaction. Each of theforegoing types of data stored in the account transaction historyrecords is explained more fully below.

Information identifying a transaction partner for a particulartransaction may be stored in the account transaction history records 230to identify a partner with whom the account holder has conducted atransaction. A transaction partner may be, for example, a merchant fromwhom the account holder purchased a good or a service, or mayalternatively be a payor from whom the account holder received payment.The identity of a transaction partner may be stored in the database byname, by a reference number, or by another suitable means.

The date and time of each transaction may be stored in the accounttransaction history records 230 to identify the date and time at whicheach transaction occurred.

The value of each transaction may be stored in the account transactionhistory records 230 to identify the value of each transaction executed.The value of a transaction may, for example, be indicated by a dollaramount exchanged between the account holder and the transaction partner.In such a case, the transaction value may be represented by any currencyamount, including, for example, a cryptocurrency amount.

The transaction type of each transaction may be stored in the accounttransaction history records 230 to identify the transaction type of eachtransaction executed. Transaction types include card-presenttransactions for which the account holder presents the account-linkedcard so that it can be swiped or otherwise read by a device in proximitywhich executes the transaction. Transaction types also includecard-not-present transactions for which the account holder does notphysically present the account-linked card to execute the transaction. Acard-not-present transaction may occur, for example, when the accountholder purchases an item online using an account-linked card by enteringinformation identifying the account-linked card. A card-not-presenttransaction may also occur, for example, when automatically payingrecurring bills, such as a utility bill or a bill for a subscription toa movie streaming service, with a an account-linked card.

Database 125 also includes virtual account-linked cards records 240.Information for virtual account-linked cards associated with the account200 are stored in the virtual account-linked cards records 240. Anaccount holder may use the virtual account-linked cards to execute atransaction without physically presenting an account-linked card, i.e.execute a card-not-present transaction. For example, an account holdermay request that an account servicing institution issue a virtualaccount-linked card to carry out a specific card-not-presenttransaction. An account holder may make such a request when access to anaccount-linked card is difficult or inconvenient. In practice, anaccount holder may request a virtual account-linked card and execute acard-not-present transaction by entering identifying information for thevirtual account-linked card such as a card number and other informationprovided for the virtual account-linked card by the account servicinginstitution. An account holder may execute a card-not-presenttransaction with a virtual account-linked card in much the same way anaccount-holder may execute a card-not-present with an account-linkedcard, though an account-holder may not execute a card-presenttransaction with a virtual account-linked card. The virtualaccount-linked cards records 240 may include information for more thanone virtual account-linked card associated with the account 200.

Database 125 also includes authorized transaction partners records 250.The authorized transaction partners records 250 includes informationidentifying authorized transaction partners for virtual account-linkedcards associated with the account 200. Each of the virtualaccount-linked cards for which information is stored in the virtualaccount-linked cards records 240 may be associated with one or moreauthorized transaction partners for which identifying information isstored in the authorized transaction partners records 250. Thisassociation is discussed in further detail hereinafter with respect toFIG. 3 .

Database 125 also includes account-linked cards records 260. Theaccount-linked cards records 260 stores information for account-linkedcards associated with the account 200 which the account holder may useto execute either card-present or card-not-present transactions. Theaccount-linked cards records 260 may store more than one account-linkedcard associated with the account 200.

Database 125 further stores information associated with account 205,account 210, account 215, and account 220. The information associatedwith those accounts is not shown with the same detail as with account200 in FIG. 2 for convenience and simplicity, though it is understoodthat similar information would be stored for each account stored in thedatabase 125. Moreover, information for many more accounts may be storedin database 125 than shown in FIG. 2 .

FIG. 3 shows in greater detail the relationship between the virtualaccount-linked cards for which information is stored in the virtualaccount-linked cards records 240 and the authorized transaction partnersfor which identifying information is stored in the authorizedtransaction partners records 250. FIG. 3 shows nine virtualaccount-linked cards 241 through 249 stored in the virtualaccount-linked cards records 240, though fewer or more may be stored andassociated with the account 200. FIG. 3 also shows nine transactionpartners 251-259 stored in the authorized transaction partners records250, though fewer or more may be stored and associated with the account200.

By way of example, virtual account-linked card 241 is shown with arrowspointing to transaction partners 252, 253, 255, and 257. In thisexample, transaction partners 252, 253, 255, and 257 are authorizedtransaction partners for virtual account-linked card 241. As aconsequence, the account holder may use virtual account-linked card 241to execute a transaction with any of transaction partners 252, 253, 255,and 257, but not with any of the other transaction partners stored inthe authorized transaction partners records 250 and not with anytransaction partners not stored in the authorized transaction partnersrecords 250. By limiting the authorized transaction partners for thevirtual account-linked card 241 in this way, the security of virtualaccount-linked card 241 can be improved as compared to a situation whereits potential transaction partners are unrestricted. Consequently, theaccount holder is better protected from fraud.

Though not shown in FIG. 3 for the sake of clarity, virtualaccount-linked cards 242 to 249 may be associated with one or more ofthe transaction partners 251 to 259 stored in the authorized transactionpartners records 250. Each of virtual account-linked cards 241 to 249may also be associated with transaction partners independently of othervirtual account-linked cards.

It should be noted that FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are conceptual diagrams tofacilitate understanding of the information stored therein and thatinformation in the database 125 may be arranged in ways other than shownin FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 .

With reference back to FIG. 1 , when an account holder has concluded hersession at card reader 105, the account holder will typically bereminded to remove the account-linked card 130 from the card reader 105.However, in certain circumstances, the account holder may forget toremove the account-linked card 130 when finished with the card reader105 and inadvertently leave the vicinity of the card reader 105 withoutthe account-linked card 130.

An embodiment of the present invention is directed to improving theaccount holder's experience in a situation where the account holder hasforgotten or abandoned her account-linked card 130 at the card reader105 by automatically converting the forgotten account-linked card 130 toa virtual account-linked card which the account holder may use to accessaccount information and execute transactions.

FIG. 4 shows a method 400 of automatically generating a virtualaccount-linked card which may be carried out by the aforementionedsystem 100. At step S405, the card reader makes a determination whetherthe account-linked card has been abandoned or forgotten at the cardreader. To make such a determination, the card reader may include acamera or motion sensor pointed in a direction toward an expectedposition of an account holder. In response to a signal that theaccount-linked card is in a slot or other receptacle of the card readerand a signal that the account holder has left the vicinity of the cardreader as detected by the camera or motion sensor, the card reader maydetermine that the account-linked card has been forgotten.Alternatively, the card reader may determine that the account-linkedcard has been forgotten in response to a signal that the account-linkedcard is in a slot or other receptacle of the card reader and apredetermined time period has passed during which no account holderactivity has been detected at the card reader.

In response to a determination at step S405 that the account-linked cardhas not been forgotten, the method 400 ends.

In response to a determination at step S405 that the account-linked cardhas been forgotten, the method 400 proceeds to step S410. At step S410,the card reader ingests the account-linked card such that it is notaccessible to a person in the vicinity of the card reader. By doing so,the card reader prevents a person other than the account holder whoencounters the forgotten account-linked card from recovering it andengaging in fraudulent transactions.

Proceeding to step S415, the card reader sends a request, which may bean API call, via the network indicating that the account-linked card hasbeen forgotten and ingested by the card reader. Then at step S420, afterreceiving the API call sent by the card reader via the network, theserver accesses the information in the database for the accountassociated with the forgotten account-linked card. The method thenproceeds to step S425.

At step S425, the server converts the forgotten account-linked card inthe database from an account-linked card associated with the account toa virtual account-linked card associated with the account. The servermay do this by moving the data identifying the forgotten account-linkedcard from the account-linked cards records of the database to thevirtual account-linked cards records of the database. The server mayalternatively convert the forgotten account-linked card by flagging theaccount-linked card in the database or by any other suitable method.Regardless of the mechanism by which the forgotten account-linked cardis converted to a new virtual account-linked card, the new virtualaccount-linked card retains the identifying information of the forgottenaccount-linked card. For example, the new virtual account-linked cardmay retain the same sixteen digit account number, expiration date, andconfirmation code of the forgotten account-linked card. The method thenproceeds to step S430.

At step S430 the server determines authorized transaction partners forthe new virtual account-linked card. The server makes this determinationbased on account transaction history stored in the account transactionhistory records of the database. A method for making this determinationwill be explained in greater detail hereinafter with reference to FIG. 5. The method then proceeds to step S435.

At step S435, the server associates the new virtual account-linked cardwith the authorized transaction partners determined in step S430 andrestricts use of the new virtual account-linked card such that it canonly be used to execute transactions with those authorized transactionpartners. In other words, the server configures the new virtualaccount-linked card such that future transactions with the authorizedtransaction partners using the new virtual account-linked card will beallowed and such that future transactions with transaction partnersother than the authorized transaction partners using the new virtualaccount-linked card will be prohibited. The method then proceeds to stepS440.

At step S440, the server transmits a notification via the network thatthe account-linked card has been ingested by the card reader as a resultof being forgotten and that the forgotten account-linked card isavailable for use as a virtual account-linked card. The notification mayfurther indicate that the virtual account-linked card is restricted foruse only with the authorized transaction partners. Preferably, thenotification is a type which may be received by the account holder'smobile phone or computer via the network.

At step S445, the server transmits a request to a vendor (not shown inFIG. 1 ) requesting a new account-linked card be issued to the accountholder. The server may further specify identifying information for thenew account-linked card to the vendor and add the requested newaccount-linked card to the account-linked cards records of the database.Then the method 400 ends.

With reference to FIG. 5 , the determination of authorized transactionpartners made in step S430 of method 400 will be further described as asub-routine called method 500. In step S505, the server determinesfavored transaction partners as predetermined by the account servicinginstitution. When the server has determined favored transactionpartners, the server may flag each of those favored transaction partnersfor association with the new virtual account-linked card. The methodthen proceeds to step S510.

In step S510, the server determines transaction partners forcard-not-present transactions. To do this, the server accesses theaccount transaction history stored in the account transaction historyrecords of the database. For transactions in the account transactionhistory, the server determines which were card-not-present transactions,i.e., which transactions occurred without the account holder presentinga account-linked card and swiping it. As additional filtering, theserver may limit its determination to transactions which occurred in apredetermined time period, e.g., within the six months, one year, etc.When the server has determined transaction partners for card-not-presenttransactions in the account transaction history, the server may flageach of those transaction partners for association with the new virtualaccount-linked card. The method then proceeds to step S515.

In step S515, the server determines transaction partners fortransactions having at least a predetermined value. To do this, theserver accesses the account transaction history stored in the accounttransaction history records of the database. For transactions in theaccount transaction history, the server determines which transactionshave at least a predetermined value. The predetermined value may be, forexample, a dollar value. For any transactions in the account transactionhistory having at least the predetermined value, the server determinestransaction partners associated with those transactions. As analternative to filtering transactions having at least the predeterminedvalue, the server may determine which transactions have a value with apredetermined value range as a means for filtering the transactions.When the server has determined transaction partners for transactions inthe account transaction history having at least a predetermined value,the server may flag each of those transaction partners for associationwith the new virtual account-linked card. The method then proceeds tostep S520.

In step S520, the server determines transaction partners having at leasta predetermined number of transactions. To do this, the server accessesthe account transaction history stored in the account transactionhistory records of the database. The server determines transactionpartners with whom the account holder has engaged in at least apredetermined number of transactions. When the server has determinedtransaction partners with whom the account holder has executed at leasta predetermined number of transactions, the server may flag each ofthose transaction partners for association with the new virtualaccount-linked card. The method then proceeds to step S525.

In step S525, the server determines transaction partners by applying amachine learning algorithm. To do this, the server accesses the accounttransaction history stored in the account transaction history records ofthe database. As an example application of a machine learning algorithm,the server may analyze the account transaction history using the machinelearning algorithm to determine transaction partners with whom theaccount holder executes recurring transactions. Based on the dates andtimes of transactions with certain transaction partners, a frequency oftransactions with certain transaction partners, a similarity in valuesof transactions with certain transaction partners, or a combination ofthe foregoing, the server may determine that the account holder executesrecurring transactions with certain transaction partners. When theserver has determined transaction partners identified by the machinelearning algorithm, the server may flag each of those transactionpartners for association with the new virtual account-linked card. Themethod then proceeds to step S530.

In step S530, the server determines account holder-selected transactionpartners. Account holder-selected transaction partners may betransaction partners that have been selected by the account holder forauthorization. The account holder may make such a selection when firstopening the account or alternatively, may make such a selection uponnotification by the account-servicing institution at the time ofingestion of an account-linked card at a card reader. Such a selectionmay be made via the account holder's mobile phone, computer, othersuitable device, or at a physical location maintained by the accountservicing institution. Account-holder selected transaction partners maybe flagged in the authorized transaction partners records of thedatabase. When the server has determined account holder-selectedtransaction partners, the server may further flag each of thosetransaction partners for association with the new virtual account-linkedcard. The method then ends.

It should be noted that method 500 as described above and shown in FIG.5 includes several steps for determining and flagging transactionpartners for association with the new virtual account-linked card, butit is not necessary for practice of the invention to perform every stepin the order shown in FIG. 5 . Embodiments of the present invention maydetermine and flag transaction partners by performing only one, or asubset, of the steps shown in FIG. 5 and may vary the order in whichmultiple steps are performed or perform them in parallel.

The advantages of practicing the method 400 in conjunction with thesubroutine method 500, both described above, are improved security andconvenience for the account holder. By automatically making anaccount-linked card forgotten at a card reader available for use as avirtual account-linked card, the account holder maintains access to heraccount and may continue to execute certain transactions she previouslyexecuted using the forgotten account-linked card with the new virtualaccount-linked card. This eliminates a period without account accessbefore either the account servicing institution can issue a newaccount-linked card and/or the account holder can retrieve the newaccount-linked card. During that period, the account holder can executetransactions using the new virtual account-linked card with authorizedtransaction partners. In the case of executing transactions withtransaction partners with whom the account holder executes recurringtransactions, the disclosed system and method provide a means to allowthose transactions to continue uninterrupted.

Moreover, by determining authorized transaction partners and restrictinguse of the new virtual account-linked card to execution of transactionswith authorized transaction partners, security of the new virtualaccount-linked card can be improved. By restricting use of the newvirtual account-linked card in this way, individuals other than theaccount holder that may have information about the forgottenaccount-linked card otherwise sufficient to engage in a card-not-presenttransaction will be prohibited from engaging in such transactions withtransaction partners other than the authorized transaction partners. Asa result, the account holder is less susceptible to fraud.

Additionally, the method 400 described above is advantageous because itautomatically transmits a request that a new account-linked card beissued to the account holder upon ingestion by the card reader. Thiseliminates the inconvenience inherent in requiring the account holder toactively request a new account-linked card when she has forgotten heraccount-linked card at a card reader.

Another embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 6 . Thesystem 600 shown in FIG. 6 includes an automated teller machine (ATM)605 and a payment card 630 which may be a debit card or a credit cardissued by an account servicing institution such as a financialinstitution or a bank. The mobile device 615, computer 620, network 635,server 610, and database 625 are analogous to the mobile device 115,computer 120, network 135, server 110, and database 125 shown in FIG. 1and described above.

In ordinary use, an account holder may insert her payment card 630 intothe ATM 605. The ATM 605 may then prompt the account holder via agraphical user interface on the display to authenticate the payment card630, for example, by entering a personal identification number (PIN). Ifsuccessfully authenticated, the ATM 605 may display the account holder'saccount information, such as available funds, to the account holder viathe graphical user interface and may also allow the account holder tomake transactions such as withdrawal of cash, deposits, or others.

When an account holder has concluded her session at ATM 605, the accountholder will typically be reminded to remove the payment card 630 fromthe ATM 605. However, in certain circumstances, the account holder mayforget to remove the payment card 630 when finished with the ATM 605 andinadvertently leave the vicinity of the ATM 605 without the payment card630.

An embodiment of the present invention is directed to improving theaccount holder's experience in a situation where the account holder hasforgotten or abandoned her payment card 630 at the ATM 605 byautomatically converting the forgotten payment card 630 to a virtualpayment card which the account holder may use to access accountinformation and execute transactions.

FIG. 7 shows a method 700 of automatically generating a virtual paymentcard when a payment card is forgotten at an ATM, which may be carriedout by the aforementioned system 600. At step S705, the ATM makes adetermination whether the payment card has been abandoned or forgottenat the ATM. To make such a determination, the ATM may include a cameraor motion sensor pointed in a direction toward an expected position ofan account holder. In response to a signal that the payment card is in aslot or other receptacle of the ATM and a signal that the account holderhas left the vicinity of the ATM as detected by the camera or motionsensor, the ATM may determine that the payment card has been forgotten.Alternatively, the ATM may determine that the payment card has beenforgotten in response to a signal that the payment card is in a slot orother receptacle of the ATM and a predetermined time period has passedduring which no account holder activity has been detected at the ATM.

In response to a determination at step S705 that the payment card hasnot been forgotten, the method 700 ends.

In response to a determination at step S705 that the payment card hasbeen forgotten, the method 700 proceeds to step S710. At step S710, theATM ingests the payment card such that it is not accessible to a personin the vicinity of the ATM. By doing so, the ATM prevents a person otherthan the account holder who encounters the forgotten payment card fromrecovering it and engaging in fraudulent transactions or withdrawingcash from the ATM using the payment card.

Proceeding to step S715, the ATM sends a request, which may be an APIcall, to the server via the network indicating that the payment card hasbeen forgotten and ingested by the ATM. Then at step S720, afterreceiving the API call sent by the ATM via the network, the serveraccesses the information in the database for the account associated withthe forgotten payment card. The method then proceeds to step S725.

At step S725, the server converts the forgotten payment card in thedatabase from a payment card associated with the account to a virtualpayment card associated with the account. The server may do this bymoving the data identifying the forgotten payment card from the paymentcards records of the database to the virtual payment cards records ofthe database. The server may alternatively convert the forgotten paymentcard by flagging the payment card in the database or by any othersuitable method. Regardless of the mechanism by which the forgottenpayment card is converted to a new virtual payment card, the new virtualpayment card retains the identifying information of the forgottenpayment card. For example, the new virtual payment card may retain thesame sixteen digit account number, expiration date, and confirmationcode of the forgotten payment card. The method then proceeds to stepS730.

At step S730 the server determines authorized merchants for the newvirtual payment card. The server makes this determination based onaccount transaction history stored in the account transaction historyrecords of the database. A method for making this determination will beexplained in greater detail hereinafter with reference to FIG. 8 . Themethod then proceeds to step S735. It is noted that database 625 asshown in FIG. 6 stores information related to “merchants” in ananalogous manner as database 125 shown in FIG. 1 stores informationrelated to “transaction partners” as described herein above. It isfurther noted that database 625 stores information related to “paymentcards” and “virtual payment cards” in an analogous manner as database125 stores information related to “account-linked cards” and “virtualaccount-linked cards,” respectively, as described herein above.

At step S735, the server associates the new virtual payment card withthe authorized merchants determined in step S730 and restricts use ofthe new virtual payment card such that it can only be used to executetransactions with those authorized merchants. In other words, the serverconfigures the new virtual payment card such that future transactionswith the authorized merchants using the new virtual payment card will beallowed and such that future transactions with merchants other than theauthorized merchants using the new virtual payment card will beprohibited. The method then proceeds to step S740.

At step S740, the server transmits a notification via the network thatthe payment card has been ingested by the ATM as a result of beingforgotten and that the forgotten payment card is available for use as avirtual payment card. The notification may further indicate that thevirtual payment card is restricted for use only with the authorizedmerchants. Preferably, the notification is a type which may be receivedby the account holder's mobile phone or computer via the network.

At step S745, the server transmits a request to a vendor (not shown inFIG. 1 ) requesting a new payment card be issued to the account holder.The server may further specify identifying information for the newpayment card to the vendor, such as a sixteen digit card number,expiration date, and security code, and add the requested new paymentcard to payment cards records stored in the database. Then the method700 ends.

With reference to FIG. 8 , the determination of authorized merchantsmade in step S730 of method 700 will be further described as asub-routine called method 800. In step S805, the server determinesfavored merchants, which may be predetermined by the account servicinginstitution. When the server has determined favored merchants, theserver may flag each of those favored merchants for association with thenew virtual payment card. The method then proceeds to step S810.

In step S810, the server determines merchants for card-not-presenttransactions. To do this, the server accesses the account transactionhistory stored in the account transaction history records of thedatabase. For transactions in the account transaction history, theserver determines which were card-not-present transactions, i.e., whichtransactions occurred without the account holder physically presenting apayment card and swiping it. As additional filtering, the server maylimit its determination to transactions which occurred in apredetermined time period, e.g., within the six months, one year, etc.When the server has determined merchants for card-not-presenttransactions in the account transaction history, the server may flageach of those merchants for association with the new virtual paymentcard. The method then proceeds to step S815.

In step S815, the server determines merchants for transactions having atleast a predetermined value. To do this, the server accesses the accounttransaction history stored in the account transaction history records ofthe database. For transactions in the account transaction history, theserver determines which transactions involved payment of at least apredetermined value. The predetermined value is preferably a dollarvalue. For any transactions in the account transaction history involvingpayment of at least the predetermined value, the server determinesmerchants associated with those transactions. As an alternative tofiltering transactions involving payment of at least the predeterminedvalue, the server may determine which transactions involved payment ofan amount within a predetermined value range as a means for filteringthe transactions. When the server has determined merchants fortransactions in the account transaction history meeting either of theforegoing criteria, the server may flag each of those merchants forassociation with the new virtual payment card. The method then proceedsto step S820.

In step S820, the server determines merchants having at least apredetermined number of transactions. To do this, the server accessesthe account transaction history stored in the account transactionhistory records of the database. The server determines merchants withwhom the account holder has engaged in at least a predetermined numberof transactions. When the server has determined merchants with whom theaccount holder has executed at least a predetermined number oftransactions, the server may flag each of those merchants forassociation with the new virtual payment card. The method then proceedsto step S825.

In step S825, the server determines merchants by applying a machinelearning algorithm. To do this, the server accesses the accounttransaction history stored in the account transaction history records ofthe database. As an example application of a machine learning algorithm,the server may analyze the account transaction history using the machinelearning algorithm to determine merchants with whom the account holderexecutes recurring transactions such as periodic payments. Based on thedates and times of transactions with certain merchants, a frequency oftransactions with certain merchants, a similarity in values oftransactions with certain merchants, or a combination of the foregoing,the server may determine that the account holder executes recurringtransactions with certain merchants. Merchants with whom the accountholder executes recurring transactions may include, for example,utilities companies or companies offering subscription services wheremonthly payment amounts and payment dates vary to some degree but fallwithin a range predictable by the server's machine learning algorithm.When the server has determined merchants identified by the machinelearning algorithm, the server may flag each of those merchants forassociation with the new virtual payment card. The method then proceedsto step S830.

In step S830, the server determines account holder-selected merchants.Account holder-selected merchants may be merchants that have beenselected by the account holder for authorization. The account holder maymake such a selection when first opening the account or alternatively,may make such a selection upon notification by the account-servicinginstitution at the time of ingestion of a payment card at a ATM. Such aselection may be made via the account holder's mobile phone, computer,other suitable device, or at a physical location maintained by theaccount servicing institution. It is preferable that such a selection bepermitted only one, or a similarly limited number of times, to avoidfraudulent activity on the account. Account-holder selected merchantsmay be flagged in the authorized merchants records of the database. Whenthe server has determined account holder-selected merchants, the servermay further flag each of those merchants for association with the newvirtual payment card. The method then ends.

It should be noted that method 800 as described above and shown in FIG.8 includes several steps for determining and flagging merchants forassociation with the new virtual payment card, but it is not necessaryfor practice of the invention to perform every step in the order shownin FIG. 8 . Embodiments of the present invention may determine and flagmerchants by performing only one, or a subset, of the steps shown inFIG. 8 and may vary the order in which multiple steps are performed orperform them in parallel.

The advantages of practicing the method 700 in conjunction with thesubroutine method 800, both described above, are improved security andconvenience for the account holder. By automatically making a paymentcard forgotten at a ATM available for use as a virtual payment card, theaccount holder maintains access to her account and funds and maycontinue to execute certain transactions she previously executed usingthe forgotten payment card with the new virtual payment card. Thiseliminates a period without account access before either the accountservicing institution can issue a new payment card and/or the accountholder can retrieve the new payment card. During that period, theaccount holder can execute transactions using the new virtual paymentcard with authorized merchants. In the case of executing transactionswith merchants with whom the account holder executes recurringtransactions, such as merchants accepting periodic payments, thedisclosed system and method provide a means to allow those payments tocontinue uninterrupted.

Moreover, by determining authorized merchants and restricting use of thenew virtual payment card to execution of transactions with authorizedmerchants, security of the new virtual payment card can be improved. Byrestricting use of the new virtual payment card in this way, individualsother than the account holder that may have information about theforgotten payment card otherwise sufficient to engage in acard-not-present transaction will be prohibited from engaging in suchtransactions with merchants other than the authorized merchants. As aresult, the account holder is better protected from fraud.

Additionally, the method 700 described above is advantageous because itautomatically transmits a request that a new payment card be issued tothe account holder upon ingestion by the ATM. This eliminates theinconvenience inherent in requiring the account holder to activelyrequest a new payment card when she has forgotten her payment card at aATM.

The present disclosure is not to be limited in terms of the particularembodiments described in this application, which are intended asillustrations of various aspects. Many modifications and variations canbe made without departing from its spirit and scope, as may be apparent.Functionally equivalent methods and systems within the scope of thedisclosure, in addition to those enumerated herein, may be apparent fromthe foregoing representative descriptions. Such modifications andvariations are intended to fall within the scope of the appendedrepresentative claims. The present disclosure is to be limited only bythe terms of the appended representative claims, along with the fullscope of equivalents to which such representative claims are entitled.It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for thepurpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intendedto be limiting.

The foregoing description, along with its associated embodiments, hasbeen presented for purposes of illustration only. It is not exhaustiveand does not limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Thoseskilled in the art may appreciate from the foregoing description thatmodifications and variations are possible in light of the aboveteachings or may be acquired from practicing the disclosed embodiments.For example, the steps described need not be performed in the samesequence discussed or with the same degree of separation. Likewisevarious steps may be omitted, repeated, or combined, as necessary, toachieve the same or similar objectives. Accordingly, the invention isnot limited to the above-described embodiments, but instead is definedby the appended claims in light of their full scope of equivalents.

In the preceding specification, various preferred embodiments have beendescribed with references to the accompanying drawings. It may, however,be evident that various modifications and changes may be made thereto,and additional embodiments may be implemented, without departing fromthe broader scope of the invention as set forth in the claims thatfollow. The specification and drawings are accordingly to be regarded asan illustrative rather than restrictive sense.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system, comprising: a server, comprising: aprocessor in data communication with a database storing account data,and a memory; and a card reader configured to: determine that a cardassociated with an account is forgotten, wherein determining that thecard is forgotten comprises: receiving, by the card reader, a signalthat the card is in a slot of the card reader, and identifying, by thecard reader, the absence of activity for a predetermined time period,generate a notification identifying the card forgotten, and transmit thenotification to the server, wherein, upon receipt of the notification,the server is configured to: disable the card, generate a virtual cardassociated with the account, generate partner identifying information,identify a set of authorized transaction partners by applying a machinelearning algorithm to the partner identifying information, identify aset of selected transaction partners comprising at least one transactionpartner selected by a user associated with the account, and limit theuse of the virtual card to transactions involving an authorizedtransaction partner or a selected transaction partner.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, wherein each authorized transaction partner has engaged in atransaction with the account within a predetermined time period.
 3. Thesystem of claim 2, wherein the set of authorized transaction partnerscomprises transaction partners which have engaged in two or moretransactions with the account.
 4. The system of claim 2, wherein the setof authorized transaction partners comprises transaction partners whichhave engaged in a transaction with the account having a value greaterthan a predetermined dollar value.
 5. The system of claim 2, whereineach transaction partner has engaged in a card-not-present transactionwith the account.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the partneridentifying information is generated based on a transaction historyassociated with the account.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein thepartner identifying information is generated based on a frequency and avalue of transactions executed with one or more transaction partners. 8.The system of claim 1, wherein the server is configured to create a flagin the database associated with the forgotten card.
 9. The system ofclaim 8, wherein the flag identifies the forgotten card as unauthorizedfor transactions involving the account.
 10. The system of claim 1,wherein the machine learning algorithm is applied to transactionpartners engaging in recurring transactions with the account.
 11. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the machine learning algorithm identifies theset of authorized transaction partners based on at least one selectedfrom the group of dates and times of transactions with transactionpartners, a frequency of transactions with transaction partners, and asimilarity in values of transactions with certain transaction partners.12. A system of claim 1, wherein: the card reader comprises at least oneof a camera or a motion sensor, at least one of a camera or a motionsensor is positioned towards an expected position of a user of the cardreader, and the at least one of a camera or motion sensor is configuredto detect the presence of the user.
 13. A method, comprising the stepof: determining, by a card reader, that a card associated with anaccount has been forgotten, wherein determining that the card isforgotten comprises: receiving, by the card reader, a signal that thecard is in a slot of the card reader, and identifying, by the cardreader, the absence of activity for a predetermined time period;generating, by the card reader, a notification identifying the card asforgotten; transmitting, by the card reader, the notification to aserver; receiving, by the server, the notification; disabling, by theserver, the card; generating, by the server, a virtual card associatedwith the account; generating, by the server, partner identifyinginformation; identifying, by the server, a set of authorized transactionpartners from the partner identifying information by applying a machinelearning algorithm; identifying, by the server, a set of selectedtransaction partners comprises at least one transaction partner selectedby a user associated with the account; and limiting, by the server, theuse of the virtual card to transactions involving an authorizedtransaction partner or a selected transaction partner.
 14. The method ofclaim 13, wherein the machine learning algorithm identifies the set ofauthorized transaction partners based on at least one selected from thegroup of dates and times of transactions with transaction partners, afrequency of transactions with transaction partners, and a similarity invalues of transactions with certain transaction partners.
 15. The methodof claim 13, wherein each authorized transaction partner has engaged ina transaction with the account within a predetermined time period. 16.The method of claim 15, wherein the transaction with the account withina predetermined time period has a transaction value within apredetermined value range.
 17. The method of claim 13, comprising thesteps of: reading the forgotten card; and ingesting the forgotten card.18. The method of claim 17, comprising the step of requesting creationof a second card.
 19. A computer-accessible non-transitory medium havingstored thereon computer-executable instructions, wherein, when acomputer arrangement comprising a card reader and a server executes theinstructions, the computer arrangement is configured to performprocedure comprising: determining, by the card reader, that a cardassociated with an account has been lost; determining, by the cardreader, that the lost card has been forgotten, wherein determining thatthe card is forgotten comprises: receiving, by the card reader, a signalthat the card is in a slot of the card reader, and identifying, by thecard reader, the absence of activity for a predetermined time period;ingesting, by the card reader, the forgotten card; generating, by thecard reader, a notification identifying the card as forgotten;transmitting, by the card reader, the notification to a server;receiving, by the server, the notification; disabling, by the server,the forgotten card; generating, by the server, a virtual card associatedwith the account; generating, by the server, partner identifyinginformation; identifying, by the server, a set of authorized transactionpartners from the partner identifying information by applying a machinelearning algorithm; identifying, by the server, a set of selectedtransaction partners comprises at least one transaction partner selectedby a user associated with the account; and limiting, by the server, theuse of the virtual card to transactions involving an authorizedtransaction partner or a selected transaction partner.
 20. Thecomputer-accessible non-transitory medium of claim 19, wherein thelimitation of the use of the virtual card to transactions involving anauthorization partner is independent of the limitation of other virtualcards.